According to a national opinion poll released by
the Coalition for the Prevention of Alcohol Problems, 70% of Americans agree that
"federal agencies should examine whether alcohol advertising on television affects
underage drinking."

Coalition members pointed to this overwhelming public support in a letter to William Kennard, Chairman
of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), urging
him to seek approval for a Notice of Inquiry to explore issues raised by the 1996
introduction of liquor advertising on radio and television.

The poll question on alcohol advertising was part of a national
telephone survey of 1005 adults conducted by Chilton Research Services between June 4 and
June 6, 1998. Of those surveyed, 43% "strongly agreed" with the proposal,
compared to 14% who "strongly disagreed." Among those polled, females (79.4%),
persons 65 years and older (72.3%), and African-Americans (75.5%) expressed the strongest
support; 71.6% of persons 18-34 also backed a federal inquiry into the effects on children
of television alcohol ads.

In July 1997 former FCC Chairman Reed Hundt proposed a Notice of
Inquiry regarding broadcast liquor advertising. That proposal failed on a 2-2 vote of the
Commission. In renewing its request for an FCC inquiry, the Coalition letter cited recent
research findings on youth alcohol use and evidence that expenditures for broadcast liquor
advertising had increased. It asserted that further agency delay might "subject
Americas children to excessive risks related to current and future alcohol
use."

Last winter, the National
Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism released a study documenting that children
who begin to drink at younger ages are at significantly higher risk of becoming alcohol
dependent (as adults) than those who begin later. An adolescent who starts drinking by age
fifteen is four times more likely to become alcohol dependent than someone who waits until
age 21.

According to Adams Liquor Handbook, broadcast advertising
for distilled spirits increased by 150% between 1995 and 1996, from $1.4 million to $3.5
million.

"Why wait for the floodgates to burst before examining the
facts and determining the impact on kids?" asked Sarah Kayson, Director for Public
Policy for the National Council on Alcoholism
and Drug Dependence, and co-chair of the Coalition. "Children are now bombarded
with a steady deluge of beer and wine ads. They certainly dont need additional
encouragement to drink."

The letter also noted research evidence cited by Donna Shalala,
Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services,
suggesting that advertising may influence adolescents to be more favorably disposed to
drinking.

"The FCC has the authority to insure that broadcasters operate
in the public interest. It has a duty, at the very least, to establish a public record on
the effects of broadcast liquor -- and other alcoholic-beverage -- advertising on
children. Delay serves no purpose other than to capitulate to the continuing pollution of
our airwaves by broadcast alcohol advertising that appeals to and influences our
children," said George Hacker, Director of the Alcohol Policies Project of the Center
for Science in the Public Interest, and Coalition co-chair.